RCMP not following Taser training guidelines, critic says
The RCMP were not following their own training guidelines when they used a Taser weapon to stun a man at Vancouver's International Airport earlier this month,according toa lawyer with experience in Taser cases.
Robert Dziekanski, a Polish immigrant,died within minutes of falling to the ground and his death is now a homicide investigation.
An RCMP training document on the use of force, obtained by CBC News,says a person must have the ability, intent and means to injure or kill someone before force is used to restrain them.
Dziekanski was reportedly wielding an office stapler two metres from the nearest police officer when the Taser was used.
Vancouver lawyer Cameron Ward, who represented a man who died after being jolted by a police taser in 2004, told CBC News Wednesday thatbased on those guidelines, and eyewitness accounts,the officers should not have used the Taser to subdue Dziekanski.
"They are supposed to follow those rules. They are supposed to abide by their training and they're supposed to obey the law," Ward said. "These circumstances did not call for them to shoot this man."
RCMP Corp. Greg Gillis,who's spent seven years training officersto use the weapon, told CBC Newsthat theguidelines for using force are taught to cadets,but are more of a "model" or "training tool" than hard and fast rules that must be followed.
The RCMP'sTasertraining expert could not speak about the specifics of the Dziekanski case,but saidthat Tasers are often safer than physical force, causing less potential harm to both police and the public.
"If we end up, for example, down on the ground and officers get injured we potentially increase the risk to the public as well, if we're not able to get quick and effective control," said Gillis.
According towitnesses, when several RCMP officers confronted 40-year-old Dziekanski at the airport early on Oct. 14, theman was agitated, shouting, banging on windows and throwing things on the ground.
Witnesses toldCBC News that police used a Taser within 30 seconds of arriving on the scene and never attempted to talk to him or calm him down.RCMP say the man was joltedtwice with 50,000 volts.
Police say there is no national standard for all Canadian police forces regarding the use of Tasers.
The B.C. Civil Liberties Association is calling for a moratorium on Taser use until there is a national standard.
Ward has gone a step further andasked John Les, B.C.'s solicitor general,to order the RCMP to only use the device when they wouldnormally use a gun.
Tasers are high-voltageweapons designed to help police stun subjects and subdue themwithout seriously harming them.
Critics point to the death of more than 50 people in North America after being hit with a Tasersince 2001. Butthe exact cause of death is often medically contentious.